Choose Hope
“You have the power to choose hope. And, you choose giving hope to people. That’s the secret of leadership. Nothing complicated. You don’t have to take a test; you just have to meet the test of life.”
Source: Peter Koestenbaum, Speaking at Connecting Community Place and Spirit (CCPS) Conference,Carlsbad, 2003
Environment + Equity + Economy
“Without a quality environment and social equity, a prosperous economy is a short term phenomenon.”
Source: Robert Harris, Vice President Environmental Affairs, Pacific Gas & Electric Company
The Challenge of Indicators
“Every community uses indicators. Though useful, these conventional measures offer only a partial view of what occurs…Moreover, in isolation these narrow indicators often paint a false or incomplete picture, indicating that the community is better or worse off than it really is.”
Source: Cuyahoga Valley Initiative, Cuyahoga Planning Commission/The Joyce Foundation/Rocky Mountain Institute
Robust and resilient communities (households, neighborhoods, towns and regions) will exemplify the qualities suggested by Robert Harris and Peter Koestenbaum. Such communities will demand rigor and integrity in their choice and presentation of indicators to guide the community. Anything less puts them at risk of being led astray by their own efforts to measure progress.
The Cuyahoga Valley Initiative is a particularly well presented project. The project goal is to bring renewal and recovery to a place once made famous for pollution so bad that the Cuyahoga River was on fire. In their overview document hope is woven into a vision, as suggested by Harris, of quality environment and social equity, a prosperous economy. It’s a fine model that other communities can emulate.
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